Night Wish
by EternalFlowerOfNight
Summary: (Lucy started the chain of events, but she's not the main character. The main characters are OC) It's been eighteen years since Lucy cut ties with Fairy Tail. During that time, no one has heard from her... Until now. Trouble is brewing in Fiora, and all the guilds must band together to defeat the common enemy: Night Wish. But how is Lucy a part in all this? Find Out.
1. This is Goodby

It had been eighteen years. Eighteen years since Lucy had terminated all her contracts with the spirits; eighteen years since she had cut all ties with Fairy Tail, and disappeared into the world. Her last wish was for everyone to remember her, but not to try to find her, giving no reasons away.

"Lucy! I don't understand why…" Natsu started, his eyes flashing with pain.

Lucy had to deal with a similar reaction to her spirit's the other night; to be more specific, especially from Leo and Capricorn. It wasn't any easier.

"L- Lucy… I promise to give you all my fish for the next month and a half if you stay…" Happy sniffled.

Sighing, her breath shaky. She refused to allow the tears to fall; she had been in Fairy Tail for five glorious years… five years too short.

Happy jumped at Lucy, tears poring from his eyes. It about broke her heart.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but please everyone… I have to do this, and if you guys care about me at all, you'll let me go. You'll let me go, and you won't try to find me."

"No way!" Gray protested. "You are a Fairy Tail wizard! This is your home, and this is where your friends and family are."

_Don't you think I already know that?_ Lucy wanted to scream, but she kept her cool. Luckily, Erza was supportive.

"If that's your decision… I will respect it."

"Erza." Natsu said angrily.

"Thank you." Lucy said softly.

"Even if we don't like it, she is our friend. We should re-respect her last wishes." Erza stated, attempting to be strong.

Suddenly there were several arms around her; Mira, Levy, Cana, and Lisanna, hugging her tightly. _Stay strong, Lucy. Don't back out now, don't get them involved. _

"Good by Lucy." several voices said, broken and saddened.

Gray and Natsu were standing a few feet away, with distant looks. "Please, understand. I'll never be able to go with a right mind if I knew that you guys hated me."

Natsu's hands wrapped around her tiny wrists tightly, but not so tight, that it would hurt. "Then stay." Natsu said with conviction, his eyes boring into hers.

"I can't." Lucy said with equal conviction; after all, she had learned it from the best.

"You are really leaving, aren't you?" Gray said flatly, still refusing to look at her.

"I am."

"And you're never coming back?" Wendy pitched in.

"That is correct. And don't" Lucy said when Natsu's mouth opened. "Ask why. Please."

"So this is… this is really good by?" Natsu said his voice the quietest it has been in years.

"Natsu, no." Happy sniffled again.

"It is."

"I guess there isn't going to be any stopping you. Is there." Gray spoke with the same monotone voice.

The words I'm sorry refused to leave her tongue. Apologizing won't make it any different. She nodded, no longer trusting her voice.

Lucy knew it would be hard- she just had no idea how hard it would be, to break her ties with them. Especially with Gray and Natsu. Suddenly Natsu had thrown his arms around Lucy, tightly, as though he would never let go. "Don't forget about us, got it?"

"Of course not." Lucy mumbled into his pink hair.

Happy had flown onto Lucy's head for some reason, and cried out "I love you Lucy!"

Finally, he pulled away, taking Happy with him.

"Well, you obviously know what happens when you leave Fairy Tail." Erza said, stepping back into Lucy's sight. "Rule number one: You must never reveal sensitive information about Fairy Tail to others for as long as you live."

"Rule number two! " Matsu continued. "You must never use former contacts met through your being in the guild for personal gain."

Then finally, the last one spoke: "Rule number three. Though our paths may have diverged, you must continue to live out your life with all your might, you must never consider your own life to be something insignificant, and you must never forget about your friends for as long as you live."

Gray had lost the iciness in his voice, and was looking at Lucy with such sad eyes. The expression everyone was giving her. Giving him a hug, and pulling Natsu and Erza in as well, she whispered softly:

"Thank you. For everything."

Just before Lucy forced herself to unwrap her arms around her teammates, Gray kissed the temple on her head. Saying her last goodbyes to everyone, and walked out of Fairy Tail for the last time. Lucy didn't know how long it was until she had stopped running, but when she did, she collapsed onto the cement pavement, the tears poring down harder than any storm.

"It is time." someone said at last, a soft, comforting voice. The person handed her a tissue.

She wiped away her tears, trying to unsuccessfully dispel of the void that has started to take place.

It took some effort, but at last, Lucy was on her feet. She looked back at Magnolia Town, her home. The place where she had found everything she ever wanted; and now it was no longer her right to claim as such. She closed her eyes, and allowed another moment of silence, before opening her eyes once more, prepared for the long road ahead.

"Yes. Let's go."


	2. Burns of a Guild

In this chapter, you only get to see the OC's, but I assure you the next chapter you'll be seeing some of the wizards from Fairy Tail. Also, I will try to update at least once a week.

The flames ate away the wood, wizards trying to use whatever they could to douse the flames. Here's their problem: nothing worked. The injured lay on a clear patch of glass, people from the guild and civilians alike frantically trying to help with the burns. Celeste balled her hand in a fist, her nails biting into her skin. It sickened her how people could just go and destroy someone's home like that, just because they could. And what was worse, she couldn't even help them out. If she, or the other two with her, revealed their position, it could mean their deaths. If the enemies had found out their involvement...  
"We were too late." Axel muttered, surveying the damage.  
He was hiding himself, as well as Celeste and their comrade, Damon, within the shadows. It was a forgotten magic, but he was able to use it exceptionally well. It concealed their very presence from all except those under the cloak of his magic. It even allowed the three to converse freely without anyone hearing them.  
"There was nothing we could do, and besides; it was the traitor that made this happen. We tried our best, and with this, hopefully the others will get the message" Damon sighed, absently running his hand through his blonde hair.  
"Not unless they are pushed in the right direction. From what we've been told, the guilds have a tendency to be prideful; prideful and stubborn. It's unlikely that one of them will be willing to form an alliance themselves. And they are bound to have heard of traitors and spies slipping by, which won't help." Celeste said, thinking about the little traitor.  
They had never met the traitor in person, but Miss Light had told them about him. Luckily he wasn't part of anything important, therefore unable to reveal any necessary information about us. Just wait till I get my hands on him, Celeste thought to herself, seething. No one betrays her, however indirect, and gets away with it.  
"And how do you propose we fix that? I suppose we could go to Fairy Tail and tell-" Dame started, bringing Celeste out of her thoughts.  
"No. You know better than anyone why we can't do that. But we do have to warn them somehow."  
"I agree it would be smart warn them, but no one is going to tell anyone anything." Axel pointed out. "If we could, I would have told Jallal that already."  
"He would be a useful asset. But if we told your uncle..." Dame trailed off.  
"Yeah, we all know who he would talk to. But you can't exactly blame him; it wouldn't be right to lie to your wife."  
"Yeah, especially when they've gone through so much."  
"We are discussing on how to help the guilds, not Erza's and Jellal's love life." Celeste snapped. She pinched the bridge of her nose, thinking. Hold on. Erza. That could actually work. "We go to Fairy Tail. It's perfect. And it won't even seem too terribly out of place either."  
"I'm not following." Damon said.  
"That's actually a good idea." Axel agreed, clearly understanding what Celeste was talking about. "Since I know Erza personally, it won't seem too out of place if we join. Especially since she has been asking for me to join the guild for awhile no anyways. I've been pretending to be on the fence lately anyways, so it shouldn't seem too weird to her when we join."  
"Right. And Erza has a lot of influence, not just in her guild, but all over the world too. If she gets the idea in her head that there should be an alliance-" Celeste continued.  
"There's no way she'll be silent, knowing her. And she will most definitely pass it onto the current guild master. Which is Laxus at the moment; he uses electricity if I recall correctly."  
"He does. I'm actually kind of surprised that he is master, given everything that happened." Damon answered, who was used to Axel and Celeste acting like a single person.  
"Over two decades ago." Celeste reminded him. "Damon, Axel, do we agree on this plan?"  
"What do you think?" Axel asked sarcastically.  
"Lets run it by m-Miss Light first." Damon said. "Last time we got in some serious trouble."  
"You do that while I get us transportation. No offends to you Ax, but I really don't want to shadow travel again, and passing through light is even worse."  
"Wuss!" He scoffed, but was half smiling.  
"Actually, it would be a lot faster if I got the transportation. There isn't a single person who can escape my mind games." Damon said, attempting to hide the pride in his voice.  
Celeste nodded. "You do that; in the meantime I'm going to find our 'friend', while you, Axel, get us approval."  
"Sure, but don't kill the traitor. He may still prove to be useful. Meet back in an hour?"  
"And once we do... Well you guys know."  
"Of course," Damon nodded. "Fairy Tail, and with them, the death of Night Wish."


	3. Joining the Fairies

It was easy enough to find their way to Fairy Tail, save the fact they had to go out of our way by thirty miles so avoid superstition. We even managed to get the approval before we stepped inside– like five feet before entering. It was a good thing Axel was so persuasive; normally Miss. Light would never have allowed them to do something like this.

Celeste did manage to find the traitor after all, and by the end of it, he was begging to be killed. Okay, normally she wasn't blood thirsty. In fact, Celeste was known for controlling her emotions. However, she hasn't used her magic in such a long time; she would admit to no one that it got a bit out of control. But on the bright side, she felt much better.

"And this, my friends, is Fairy Tail." Axel said, dramatically sweeping his arm as though revealing a crappy magic trick.

Celeste couldn't help but be impressed with the architecture. It was large and grand, but it was like a home. Inviting to all and full of light. Not to mention the beauty of it. However, the moment she stepped inside, she saw chaos. Everywhere. There were a few kids running around; most were fighting, either with fists or words. No one seemed to care that a woman, middle aged, yet still beautiful, was chugging a barrel in the most unlady-like manner Celeste had ever seen. Or that one of the tables was turning into ice.

"This is Fairy Tail?" Celeste asked, slightly deflated.

Dane's eyes were bright. "This place is incredible! It's so full of life; no wonder Miss. Light had a soft spot for this place."

"It's a bit weird at first, but you get used to it." Axel assured her. "I've been here a few times before so... Oh there she is."

Celeste and Damon turned over to see a radiating red head. Her hair was braided at her back, going down almost to her knees, her silver armor polished and shining. Despite being in her early forties, the woman was still extremely beautiful and strong. Erza was exactly how Axel described her.

"Erza!" Axel called, waving her over.

Erza smiled, pleasantly surprised, and judging from her expression and demeanor, as well as everyone else's, they had yet to hear of the damage at the other guild.

"Axel, hey; is this I think it is? Are you finally joining?"

"I am, actually. The main reason I didn't join earlier was because I couldn't bear to leave my two best friends. But now, that clearly isn't the case."

Erza looked at Celeste and Damon with mild curiosity, as though just realizing that they were there. "Oh how rude of me; I am Erza Scarlet."

Damon shook her hand first. "Pleasure to meet you ma'am; I'm Damon."

Ezra narrows her eyes. "Have we met before? You look awfully familiar."

"No, I don't think so. I would remember if I had met Titania in person."

Then she turned to Celeste. Celeste knew immediately that Erza didn't like her; or rather, was cautious. For almost as long as she could remember, Celeste got grief wherever she went. She was too quiet, she didn't have enough emotion, her eye colors were weird; and yes, she means colors. Her left eye was a sea green, which was pretty enough, but seemed cold and calculating. Her right eye was an icy blue, making her appear even colder. She might have kept it hidden, but her alias was known for having one eye covered, showing only a deep blue.

"I've heard a lot about you. I'm Celeste Lamore."

"You know, I think Axel has actually mentioned the two of you a few times. Are all three of you-"

"Where is she? I'm going to kill her!" A girl with pink hair yelled.

She had tan skin, pink hair, and pretty blue eyes; what a strange combo.

Erza sighed, muttering under her breath "Like father like daughter; at least he was more of a good than anything."

"Amber, calm down. Jane is on a mission." A boy with silver hair said. Although their coloring was completely different, the two had enough similar features for Celeste to guess they were siblings.

"Great. Just like her; always running away."

"She isn't running. What did Jane do now?" The boy asked, mildly bored.

"She backed away on a fight, after insulting me." The girl fumed. "Nate, do you know where she is?"

"I already told you; she's on an S-class mission, so she won't be back for at least a week." The boy, Nate, said.

Amber groaned. "Do you need a drink or something?" A girl, probably about a year younger than Celeste herself, who's 17, asked.

"Shut up, Fullbuster."

"Enough. Take yourself, and your attitude outside. You are a grown woman; act like it." Nate said coldly.

"And I should listen to my younger brother because...?"

Celeste glanced at her comrades and knew they were all sharing the same thought. This girl was a brat. Damon looked at her, his eyes glowing slightly. Whenever that happens, you know he's using magic; it was a drawback for him, but hardly anyone notices it. Celeste had to cover her smile; Damon was incredible at mind control. He could make you do anything he wants you to do; even those with powerful willpower have trouble with him.

Amber visibly relaxed, her eyes bright with resilience, but eventually that too calmed. "Perhaps I should go cool off elsewhere." She said angrily, turning around and out of the guild.

The other guild members gave a sigh of relief. All except Erza, that is.

"And who do we have here?" Someone whispered, right behind Celeste.

The three of them froze; no one is able to sneak up on them. It's even more impossible for anyone to be unnoticed by Axel. The three of them reacted faster than they could think; Axel had made a sword out of light, Damon was in a defensive position, and orbs of pure magic had formed in Celeste's palms.

The young man in front of them held his hands up lazily, none too concerned that three powerful wizards were ready to attack him.

"Calm down there kids; I'm not gonna hurt you."

His eyes were lined heavily with black eyeliner, and were wearing a black hoodie too large for him, with ripped up jeans. "Well, isn't this a surprise. Hey mom, have you finally gotten this guy to join Fairy Tail?"

His question was directed to the redheaded Titania.

"Mom?" Damon and Celeste said at the same time. Axel looked just as confused.

"Yeah." He said lazily. "I'm Ace Fernandes. And she, Erza, is my mother."


	4. Quite the Surprise

_By the way, every couple of chapters or so, the P.O.V will be changing with the main protagonists.  
_  
Axel's P.O.V  
Axel stared at the boy in front of him; Ace, who he remembered as this happy-go-lucky kid, now had a bored and vacant expression. When they were kids, after Jellal had found him, they became fast friends, despite having a five-year difference in age. He looked exactly like his father, without the tattoo, of course, but had Erza's eyes. That was the only thing that hadn't changed.  
"What happened to you?" Axel blurted.  
Ace gave a lazy smile. If Axel didn't know him as well as he did, he wouldn't have been able to see the pain behind it.  
"Why bother asking? You already know the answer, little brother."  
Axel could feel Damon and Celeste's curious eyes on him. After he had joined the organization, those two had become his family. They probably though he had told them everything, so Axel wasn't surprise when Damon opened a Telepathy link with him.  
_What the hell is he talking about, Axel? I know that Jellal had taken you in when you were just a kid, but you never mentioned that guy.  
There is a reason for that. Now get outta my head, will you? I'll explain later. _Axel replied, cutting the link.  
"Ace, where have you been?" Erza demanded.  
Caught up in surprise, Axel had actually forgotten Erza was there, and his purpose of coming to Fairy Tail.  
"I was on a mission. Don't you know that missions can last for weeks? And I don't exactly need your permission to go, do I?"  
"So you're Ace, huh?" Celeste stepped in, purposely being oblivious to the tension. Axel had never been more thankful. "Nice to meet you, finally. I vaguely remember this guy mentioning you, but as usual left out the important details. I'm Celeste, by the way."  
"Pretty name. So are you joining Fairy Tail along with Ax?"  
She nodded, giving an innocent smile. "Yeah, actually. The three of us have been kind of wandering around for a really long time. When Axel mentioned this place, we agreed it was time to find a home. I just hope this place is that, if you'll have us."  
It was a simple lie, but as usual, Celeste pulled it off perfectly. If he didn't know her, he'd probably think she was an innocent girl who couldn't hurt a fly, with that smile on her face. And if he didn't know her, Axel couldn't imagine her torturing anyone, either.  
"How's your magic? The little show you displayed a moment before was mildly impressive."  
"Only mildly? Well, either way, that is my little secret. Oh! This is Damon, my brother." Celeste lied, pulling Damon over, linking her arm around his.  
"Hi." Damon said stiffly.  
"He's not much of a people person." Celeste smiled apologetically.  
She looked perfectly at home; wasn't she the one who became the most uncomfortable when they had first entered?  
"It's nice to meet Axel's new family." He nodded, and then turned to his mother. "I'll be down stairs. We are getting way too much attention here."  
They were getting some curious stairs from the other members, so Erza sighed, unsure of what to do with her son. So, she turned to Axel and said her farewells. "You can find Laxus in his study. It's in the back, and the last door at the end. It'll be great to see you every day again, Axel."  
Axel just smiled, and glanced at his friends. Celeste was giving him the 'you have some explaining to do' look, and Damon was still irked that Axel had kicked him out of his mind. Damon was able to create a Telepathy Link with anyone, at a radius of 120 miles, and is usually the only one who can cut that link. Very rarely can the other person dislink and its extreme my difficult. The closer you are, the more difficult the cut, and Axel managed to cut it seemingly easily. But that wasn't the reason Damon was annoyed. The Telepathy Link could allow Damon to go into the deepest parts of the other person's mind, not that he would with Axel, but he still couldn't take that chance. To Damon, Axel knew it would seem that he didn't trust him. I'll fix that later, Axel promised himself.  
"Thanks, Erza. It's like coming back home." It wasn't necessarily a lie.  
Erza nodded, and then followed her son out. "Well that was a bit more drama than I would have liked. First Amber, and then Ace."  
"No kidding, my head is spinning. What do we do with these curious stares?" Celeste muttered.  
Unfortunately, they were still receiving way too much attention. Axel looked at Damon, who sighed. "What will you two do without me? Just hold on a moment."  
He concentrated, his eyes glowing ever so slightly, and as though everyone in the room had forgotten the trio's presence, they turned away. Axel allowed himself the luxury of relaxing and walked towards the study Erza had mentioned.  
Years before, when Jellal had found him, Axel was able to meet a few of the Fairy Tail members. Laxus was not one of them, so he wasn't really sure how to prepare himself. Maybe it was the fact he was an assassin for three years, but Axel liked to know whom he was dealing with. If he was too powerful, they can't exactly use Damon to make Laxus just accept them in the guild. And besides, who knows how long that would last. And obviously, they can't fight the guild master; they might win, but then there would be distrust and attention upon them from the rest of the guild.  
"Relax." Celeste whispered. "I did some research before we got here. While Laxus isn't likely to take in just anyone into the guild, he does trust Erza with his life. If Erza trusts you, he's likely not going to need much trouble convincing. And if my plan fails, we can easily go to plan B."  
"Plan B?" Axel asked, stopping in front of the study.  
"You'll know when it comes to it." She said, just as she knocked on the door.  
"Come in." A deep, but weary, voice answered.  
The three walked in to find Laxus sitting behind his desk. He was doing some kind of work, and hadn't even looking up.  
"Well you three came much faster than expected."  
"Excuse me?" Damon inquired. "What do you mean?"  
"I was told that three wizards were going to join Fairy Tail within this week. I got word just yesterday."  
Yesterday? But we hadn't even gotten permission until today, Axel thought. "Who told you this?"  
"A man named Casten. While I don't necessarily trust him, I have known him for years." Laxus explained. "I am to assume that you are the three wizards I have been expecting? Researching the attacks on the guilds."


	5. Officially in the Guild

The three of them stood there, speechless; even Axel couldn't have predicted this one. Casten was Miss. Light's right hand man, as well as Damon's father. The man has been known to know everyone's next move, but to go as far as to predict them joining Fairy Tail before they had even thought of it?

Axel glanced at Damon, who was expressionless, unreadable. He clearly didn't like the idea of his workaholic father getting wrapped up in their affairs. Of course Casten was trying to bring down Night Wish like them, but he has his own ways of doing things.  
"What is your relationship to Casten?" Damon demanded, after a minuet of silence.  
"A very complicated one. He was in love with a good friend of mine, so you could say I know him only be default." Laxus finally looked up at them. "So, are you Axel, Celeste, and Damon?"  
"We are..."  
"Then welcome to Fairy Tail."  
"Is it really that easy?" Axel asked in disbelief.  
"Depends. Are you here to help, or destroy my family?" Laxus' eyes narrowed.  
"So basically keeping your enemies closer, right?"  
"Not exactly, but I certainly don't welcome you. To be candid, I'd really rather not deal with people associated with that man."  
"Then why are you?" Celeste asked.  
"It's nothing too complicated. I will do anything to keep my family alive and uninjured. If that means adding a few extra powerful wizards whom I may not trust, to help, then I will accept it. However, I will warn you. If I so much as even sense a betrayal, you three will not live to see another day."  
"That's a bit harsh, don't you think?" Damon asked, his voice turning cold.  
"Do I know you?" Laxus asked instead.  
"No." He answered stiffly.  
"Sir, I assure you none of us will betray you, or this guild." Celeste promised, stealing a glance at Damon. "We only want to help."  
What she really wanted was to take out Night Wish, but that was beside the point. Night Wish has been a pain in their ass for as long as they could remember. Although Celeste's expression gave anything away, Axel knew she was worried. Whenever she twists her silver locks into a tight bun like that, she's dwelling on something.

"For your sake, you better not. Although, I would like to know why you work for him. He wasn't one to work with children, and especially wouldn't trust them to do something like this."

"We don't work for him-" Damon started, but cut himself off. "I mean, not directly. He just… happens to be an authority figure, and is fighting the same war that we are."  
"If you say so." Laxus shrugged, but his eyes were sharp. "What do you know of the group that has been targeting wizard guilds?"  
Reluctantly, the threesome told Laxus about Night Wish. "We don't know who the boss is exactly," Celeste started. "But twenty years ago, he grew an obsession with wizards. Their abilities, how powerful they could get. As well as how some wizards that use objects, like celestial wizards, and how they can summon creatures or objects."  
Axel continued on. "He went around, ruthlessly, trying to find powerful wizards. At first, when the group was small, they didn't bother the extremely powerful wizards. The stronger wizards were usually in guilds, and there for more difficult to get to. However, something happened eighteen years before, and he of went off the grid."

"Alright, why do you care so much?" Laxus inquired.  
"Because, five years after their disappearance," Axel responded hesitantly, "Night Wish killed Celeste's and mine parents for reasons unknown. He had also attempted to kill Damon's mother through poison before, but only made her ill. That group has affected either way, our lives. And recently, Night Wish has grown powerful enough to take out entire guilds."  
"Blue Pegasus." Laxus confirmed. "I have a good friend over there, and have already informed me what happened. They were attacked by only a single wizard with an ability with fire that was just as, if not more powerful, as Natsu's. But you all would already know that, even I you might not actually care."  
Axel thought about how easily the horrific flames destroyed the guild. When they were watching them, he could feel Celeste's unease. He knew how badly she wanted to help, and how much it pained her not to do so.  
"What exactly are you implying?" Celeste demanded.  
"Nothing. Just making a statement. How long do you plan on staying in my guild?"  
"As long as it takes."  
His expression didn't change. "If that's all..."  
"There is one thing." Celeste said. "Please don't mention our involvement with Night Wish to anyone."

"No problem."

And with that, the three were in the guild.

_Ugh, I know. Bad chapter… I assure you all that from here on out, the story is gonna pick up. Any and all _Constructive _criticism is accepted and encouraged as well. See you all next week._


	6. Chapter 6

Six Months Later  
Damon's P. O. V.  
After they had joined the guild, Damon was surprised to see that everyone – except Laxus– had accepted them with open arms. Sure, he had heard a lot of great things about this place, but it was different for him to experience it. Besides Laxus, the bastard, everything was great. Damon had also heard that the current guild master was a bit of an ass, but still. For the guy to completely bite their heads off after finding out that we had 'worked' with Casten was completely uncalled for. Imagine what he would do if he found out Damon was his son; now that would be a nightmare.

Not that Damon really wanted to admit that man was his father. For as long as he could remember, his father never paid a whole lot of attention to him. Not that he cared; Damon was proud to say he was a mamma's boy. Axel teased him about it all the time, but he could see deep down he was jealous. It was not an angry or bitter kind of jealousy, but the sad kind.

Damon was very close with his mother, but she was ill before he was even born, so there were days she couldn't spend time with him. Moreover, he decided that someday he would find a cure for her.  
Julia Fullbuster and Nate Dragneel had welcomed them first, because they had apparently knew Axel when he was a kid. After he had cut the telepathy link the first time, Damon didn't even bother trying to create another one to have him explain that one. All three of them had secrets they wanted left in the dark, but Axel was probably the most guarded. Damon knew the guy was paranoid, and almost more than anything else, hated it when Damon was in his head when he didn't need to be. Even knowing that, it still annoyed him.  
_Damon, are you in position?_ Celeste asked, her voice echoing in Damon's head.  
His 'sister' was in the front of the mansion, ready to make a diversion so Axel could slip in without having to worry about the guards. Damon was here to help both the diversion, and to get Axel in. Axel was a powerful wizard, with his incredible ability to bend the light and shadows at his will, but it wasn't perfect yet. In his assassin jobs, he only had to use his abilities for a short period, and never trained himself to use them for a prolonged period of time, till now. For the past few months, his abilities have improved considerably. Now having said that, before it took a toll on his body, Axel was still only able to completely conceal himself for ten minutes  
Damon was in the control room, the workers there passed out, tied up, and locked in the closet. He looked at the monitors, Celeste and Axel nowhere to be seen. Perfect.  
_Yup. How you holding up, Axel?_  
_So far so good. Ready when you two are. _

_Good_. Damon said. _'Celeste, its time_.

Not even a second later, there was a loud explosion at the front gate, debris flying in every direction. He really wanted popcorn so he could watch the guards attempt to take down Celeste. It was always entertaining to watch someone, especially one without magic ability, try to fight either Celeste or Axel, and think that they have a chance.  
The guards poured out, leaving almost everywhere else in the mansion empty, to take care of the problem. _Go easy on them sister dearest_.  
_'Still going on about that? It was the first thing that came to mind, Damon. And besides; that was like, six months ago._' Was her response; Damon couldn't help but notice she said nothing about going easy on them.  
He allowed himself the luxury of watching Celeste's battle for a moment before turning his attention to the mission at hand. Several guards were caught in a light purple explosion of Celeste's magic, completely unaware the extent if her power. Celeste had a very unique ability to create magic in its purest form. She could form them in the palms of her hands, the purplish color matching her personality. The interesting thing about them was the fact she could use them for exploding, as well as binding and creating objects. It wasn't as efficient as something like ice make, but it was still pretty good.  
Forcing himself to the other monitor, the one that covered the library, he triple checked it before accepting that it was completely clear and free from guards. _'All clear Ax; your good to go.'  
_Without responding, Axel materialized before Damon's eyes in the library. Their job was to find the Book of Secrets, and then get out. His mother told him the Book of Secrets held forbidden and lost magics from long ago, and their ever so helpful friends, Night Wish, wants it. Luckily, so did Laxus–did he seriously put luckily and Laxus in the same sentence? – And he also knew its location. Laxus assured them that no one would know of this mission, or of their location. However, Damon wasn't about to trust the guy yet, so took precaution. Too much precaution is never a bad thing. He had set up link traps all over the mansion, so he would know if there was an intruder.  
A shadow of a thought, one that belongs to no one who should be at the mansion, crossed into the link trap, but when Damon checked the monitors, the intruder was nowhere to be seen. So this person was smart; he looked into the network of links, trying to find the particular thought. He frowned, unable to find their location. The telepathy link worked kind of like a series of computers, or even a spider's web. When someone sets up the web, he knows all that happening around him, unless the other is more skilled. Damon closed his eyes, and surveyed the entire mansion once more, focusing on the details. Celeste, who was having way too much fun, easily wiped out the magicless guards, at the gate, Axel looking for the book, and of course, there was an old guard who had dozed off. Of course, there were hidden guards that surrounded the outside... But where was the intruder? Feeling his head starting a steady throb, Damon carefully focused more, until he found it... What the hell?  
Instinct took over, and Damon pulled his sword from the belt, blocking the attack. The attacker was right behind him! How in the hell did Damon manage to miss the intruder?  
The attacker, judging from the build, was definitely a female, despite being heavily disguised. Her face was covered with a festival mask; a fox's face, and held a beautiful katana in her hands. A long black cloak covered her entire body shapelessly. They stared at one another, measuring their opponent, before striking simultaneously.  
Damon struck, which she easily blocked– her strength is greater than his at 30%– and made a counter strike. She got past Damon's sword, and lunged expertly at his throat– the woman is clearly skilled, and fights like a Ziathan– to which Damon dodged. He was able to dodge her using only half of his speed, but the intruder was likely holding back. They danced around a bit, measuring each other's strengths and weaknesses.  
He found that she was more powerful at 30%, but about equal at 50%. She wasn't faster than his speed at 60%, but could still easily keep up. What was worse, she managed to get passed his defenses a few times, slashing at his shirt. It would seem she might be more skilled than him in the area of fighting. If they continued on like this, Damon wasn't sure he could win. It would be best, Damon decided, that I don't play around anymore. Using all his strength, he overpowered her easily enough– likely only because before then he was only using half his power– and grabbed the top of her mask, fingers wrapping around her hair. It took only a moment to enter her mind. He could have done it without touching her, of course, but it was a lot faster and more efficient to do so. Getting past the walls that guarded the human mind, a little too easily, Damon made his way to the 'control room' of the brain. If he could get there, then this woman was as good as dead. And he was so close...  
Time seemed to slow down; it felt as though icy fingers curled around the back of his neck, and physically pulled him out of her mind. The next thing he knew, he was sprawled on the floor, wide open to any attack.  
"Impossible..." Damon muttered, head spinning.  
As the tip of her sword kissed his throat, Damon looked into the soulless eyes of her mask. For a moment, just a split second, his mind was blank. Nothing came to mind, no opening available. He was going to lose, she was going to- he shut out all fear and forced himself to speak, channeling his inner Axel, before thoughts of death completely overrode his mind.  
"Let me guess; this is the part where I'm supposed to say my last words, right?"  
Even if he wasn't on good terms with his father, he will never be ungrateful for all the harsh training. He kicked her away, and seized her mind once more in that quick, fluid motion. Instead of going for the control room, which controls the entire part of her body, he went for the eyes, which would temporarily blind her and cause a massive migraine. And by temporary, he means five seconds.  
One second: he threw her sword as far as possible, after an image of a little girl playing in a field. Two seconds: he grabbed her neck, and pinned her to the floor, just as another image entered into his mind: this time of fire. The third second he managed to retrieve his sword, which, thankfully, was only a foot away from him. He pointed it to her throat, his entire weight ensuring her inability to move.  
"Who are you?" Damon demanded, voice shaking, as he removed her mask.  
However, before he could completely remove the mask, her body morphed into dozens of butterflies, clothes left behind. Well, that was a rather interesting ability, he thought to himself in a daze. Half expecting the attacker to resume her human form, he put his sword up. Instead, the swarm of butterflies flew out of the room. He debated whether or not to chafe her, but decided against it.  
_'Guys. There are unknown intruders, likely Night Wish. Celeste, Axel, do you understand?'_ He demanded, his heart quickening when no response came_. 'Axel. Celeste? Say something before I have a frigging heart attack.'  
'I'm here. Sorry man, I gotta concentrate.'_ Axel's voice came, loud and clear.  
Damon sighed with relief. _'Celeste? You still there?'_  
_'I'm a bit winded, but yeah. Intruders, you say? All I see are these guards. Where the hell do they come from? They keep on coming like pesky flies.'_  
_'We need to get out of here, now. I can't tell if there are any more intruders.'  
'Hold on, I found the book.'  
'Put it in your shadows then and get out of there.'  
'Damon, relax.'_ Celeste said her voice soft and calming. _'What do you mean you can't tell if there are more?'  
'It's exactly what I said. I couldn't even tell if there was one when she was in the same "room" as me.'  
'Retrieved the object. Let's get going.'  
'I'm outta here then.'_ Celeste said.  
Damon took in a deep breath, and checked if he had any injuries. Nothing major, although the woman did manage to demolish his shirt. Great, wasn't he better at defending himself than that?  
'Never was the best swordsman...' The memory of his father's voice entered.  
He ignored it. No, she was definitely a Ziathan. Those who train with them, start the vigorous arts of war since a young age. It was only natural for her to be better. Sheathing his sword, Damon bailed out of the security room. Looking both ways before heading out, he sprinted to the exit. Hopefully he wouldn't deal with another one of those... "Get a hold of yourself." He growled at himself.  
What was wrong with him? He's dealt with stronger opponents than her before. 'But that was the first time someone managed to pull you out of their mind.' Shaking his head, Damon stopped thinking about the fight. 'There will be time for that later, when I have time to think.' Pressing himself against the wall, he looked ahead. His telepathy link covered the entire mansion, so he was able to see a few meters ahead of him, unless someone like Axel or that woman was there.  
When he concluded that it was safe to continue, he did so, taking weary steps. It wasn't as fast to walk, but it was a lot quieter, and easier on him. Damon could feel fatigue washing into his bones and mind, as annoying as it was. The last time he overused his abilities, he had a splitting migraine for nearly a week.  
Then he heard breathing that was not his own.


	7. A Persuasive Tongue

_Sorry for taking so long to update! Finals are coming up, so I'm sure that you can understand how busy that can make a person. Anyhow, here is chapter seven (finally). Enjoy._

Damon abruptly stopped, and looked into the link again. His eyes widened to see a woman– a woman with a fox mask and a black cloak. She had doubled over, panting and gasping in pain. Damon blinked; he knew that there was no way he could have done that kind of damage. Not unless he had managed to do some damage before she pulled Damon out from her mind. He looked again. She was bent over, and her gloved hands– had they always been gloved? – were covering her ears, as if a sharp ringing was disrupting her. Damon knew that position rather well; several of his opponents suffered the same thing. Although there was the fact that they were always moaning in pain, and sometimes even had blood spilling out from their ears. Now he only touched her mind, so she shouldn't be in too much pain, right?  
She gasped again, sharp, which was followed by a groan. She clearly wasn't used to that sort of pain. Damon was sure Axel and Celeste would probably just leave the girl there. His father would as well, but... Damon was most definitely his mother's son. Damon went into her mind, but instead of a malicious thought to defeat her, he healed the pain that he had caused. When he pulled away, she had relaxed, and he knew the pain was gone. She stood a little straighter, back pressed against the wall.  
"Come out. I know your there, Damon." Well, if he didn't know she was female before, Damon did now. Her voice was soft, almost sweet.  
Although, he couldn't help but wonder: how did she know his name? Damon shrugged and entered her field of vision anyways. "You plan on trying to killing me again?"  
"I want to know how you did that." She said, head turning to him.  
"Did what?"  
"Go into my mind like that. I've fought with people who could read minds, and even go into my own. But never have I met someone who was able to..." she shook her head, turning to face Damon. "And then you healed me. Is that some kind of twisted joke?"  
"No. I felt bad."

They exchanged glances, her expression guarded and in disbelief.  
"You felt bad. Are you kidding me?"  
"No. Should you even be talking to me? You were sent to kill me, failed, so shouldn't you be trying to finish the job?"  
"You really think I'm going to fight you again after that?"  
Damon wanted to groan. He's had this kind of reaction before, but never expected it from her. He hated being feared like that, and what was worse, he understood why. The weird part, though, was the fact the more he spoke to her, the calmer he became, and began to forget why he was scared of her in the first place.

Shaking himself out of a daze, he spoke again.  
"I'm not going to apologize for defending myself. But if you were hired to kill, and didn't do the job, won't there be some kind of consequence?"  
"You never answered my question."  
"For a Ziathan, you don't seem too bright. What makes you think I would even _consider_ explaining my ability to you?" Damon became positive that she was, indeed, a Ziathan because she stiffened at the word. "I read a lot, and know several forms o fighting. I know someone who trained with them, and I've seen a Ziathan fight. It was obvious you were one, when I started fighting you." He explained.  
She said nothing— the puzzled expression still displayed on her face– and he almost walked away, but his damned conscious got the better of him. "Do you need help or something? If you have any injuries..."  
"I'm fine." She said shortly, appeared to have recovered from whatever confusion she had experienced. "What game are you trying to play at? I kill you, you try to kill me, and then you help me."  
"Look, there is no game. However, you don't seem like an awful person out to destroy the world."  
"Don't pity me." She growled, the softness gone completely from her voice.  
"I'm not." He said, suddenly tired. "If you don't want my help, that's fine. But you don't seem to be in very good shape. Do you still have a headache?"  
"No. Why would you..."  
"Like I said. I felt bad. I never was good in battle, because afterwards I felt guilty. I also have a habit to help people."  
"That's awfully naive." She crossed her arms, color returning to her face.  
"I get it from my mother. If you're not going to kill me, and not going to let me help you, then I am going to leave." He took a step forward.  
"You saw my memories." She blurted.  
"That happens sometimes. I don't really know why, so I would appreciate it if you didn't ask."  
"W-what did you see?"  
"You as a little girl, playing in a field. You had a little rag doll, with a red dress. Then I saw your entire family burn to death, while you watched in horror. There was a symbol burned into the grass; a skull, if I remember correctly."  
She looked away, as though embarrassed. "Can you forget about it?"

"What?"

Then she looked directly in his eyes, and this time he saw the color changing in her eyes. It turned into a deep, mesmerizing blue that he could just get lost in…

"Forget about what you saw." When she spoke, it was soft, persuasive.

Forget? Forget about what… What were they talking about again? He saw those amazing eyes, and then the world kind of got lost. There was something before that though…

He shook his head, finally remembering. How could he have forgotten? "Sorry, can't do that. Or rather, it might come in handy later on."

Her eyes widened and took a step back. "What the hell? Who are you?"

He opened his mouth to answer, but she was already gone, a flutter of butterflies out an open window.

"How does she do that?" he muttered to himself.

_Earth to Damon! Hey, are you there? _Celeste's voice came through.

In his confusion, he had actually forgotten about the telepathy link he had kept open. Was he losing it?

_Yeah, sorry. Is Axel with you?_

_He's got the object secured too. What's going on with you?_

_Nothing. I'll explain later; let's just get out of here._

_Right. We are in the front gate, by the way._

_Got it._ Damon responded, and sprinted to his destination. This had been a really weird day for him, and wanted to get it done and over with. Besides, he had to call his mother, and see how she was doing. Some people might think it pathetic, but he hadn't spent more than a few months away from his mother, and was starting to get anxious. He never knew when the next attack on her health might take place, and if something happened when he wasn't there… _enough. Worrying won't do you any good; focus on the mission, and find a cure, _he told himself. Although it wouldn't hurt to give a call.

The trio stood in front of Laxus, Axel giving him the book. "What do you plan on doing with this anyways?"

"That is for me to know, and you three to forget about. Sorry, but I don't trust you with such information." Laxus' eyes were directed at Damon's. Typical. "Of course, I will also be giving you the reward, split into three. The reward was 500,000,000 jewels in case you were wondering."

Damon felt his eyes widen, and he glanced at his teammates. They had similar expressions.

Celeste recovered the quickest.

"Why didn't you give it to an S-class wizard?" Celeste inquired. "You trust them, and are easily qualified for such a job."

"That is very true, however I want Night Wish to be kept as secret as possible. Not only that, but also all the S-class members are already handling… delicate matters. I was fortunate to be able to keep Erza around as it is."

Axel nodded. "That's right. I haven't seen some of the other famed members around. I heard that Natsu and Gray are actually out in the desert in search of a sacred stone."

Laxus raised an eyebrow, mentally asking how he knew that, yet said nothing. Damon thought about that; perhaps it was a good thing that Natsu and Gray weren't there. It would definitely complicate things.

"If that's it, then I am going back to the apartment." Damon yawned. It was late at night, and he wanted to call his mother as soon as possible. Unfortunately, there wasn't time because the retaliation from the mansion was hot on their trail for a while, and they had to lose them before being able to come back.

"What about the reward?" Axel asked.

"You can pick it up for me, can't you?"

He shrugged, and without another word, Damon left Laxus' office for home. Ignoring the live chatter from the wizards that stayed late to drink away whatever sorrows they might have, he reached the large wooden doors. Damon inhaled the clear night air before walking forward. About three blocks from his home, Damon decided to pull out his phone, positive that any bystander was out of earshot. He dialed the first number, and his world went black.


End file.
